Kangarilla Drilling Pty Ltd
PO Box 720
McLaren Vale
South Australia 5171

Ph:+61 (0)8 8556 4233
Fax: +61 (0)8 8556 4287
Email: admin@kandrill.com.au


Kangarilla Drilling is a small family owned drilling and pump sales and service company focussing mainly on drilling for water in the southern parts of South Australia concentrating on:
· Upper South East
· Murray Mallee
· Fleurieu Peninsula
· Adelaide Metropolitan (Golf Courses, City Councils & Commercial Clients)

The Kangarilla Drilling staff is experienced and qualified to drill in all formations from hard rock (high pressure air drilling) to soft sedimentary (mud drilling) and sand formations (screens).

The other façade to the business is its ability to offer clients a one stop shop in the purchasing, installation of pumps, and all pump service requirements, as the company holds accounts with all the major pump manufacturing/supply companies.


Link to:

Thorpe Wines

Central Diesel



HISTORY
The business started when Gilbert Thorpe, being a tinkerer at heart, built a drilling machine in 1935 as a necessity to the survival of his family’s farming interests. His son David, with an interest in drilling, worked along side his father from a very early age. As the local community flourished so too did the demand for water. In 1954 Gilbert and David bought a Ruston Bucryus 22RW Cable Tool Drilling Rig. Gilbert died in 1967 but David (and his wife Kath) continued to drill. David’s son Craig helped his father out the best he could during school holidays, and when he finished his schooling in the late 1970’s began working for his father initially in the Pump Service side of the business. In 1981 the family decided to buy a more modern, state of the art Drilling Rig, an Ingersoll Rand TH60. It was at this time that the Company Kangarilla Drilling was established.
Craig married Nicole in 1986, and she took on the job as the company’s accounts manager. In 1990 together as a driving force, they took on Kangarilla Drilling, and have greatly expanded the company’s client base.
In the mid 1990’s Craig looked at updating the Ingersoll Rand TH60 (as it was now 15 years old) but was unimpressed with the selection available. He chose instead to upgrade the same Rig and working closely with a colleague at Central Diesel Pty Ltd, the Rig was stripped to the chassis and rebuilt to Craig’s specifications.
The drilling rig is now capable of (with all pumps & compressors on board) drilling to depths of up to 300 meters diameters ranging from 150mm to 450mm.
Today the business is based in McLaren Vale, about 15 minutes west of its original hometown base of Kangarilla and Craig and his staff have over 75 collective years in the drilling and pump industries.